One day, a man loaded his horse heavily with coconuts he had gathered. On his way home, he met a boy and asked how long it would take to reach his house.
"If you go slowly," said the boy, looking at the load, "you will arrive very soon; but if you go fast, it will take you all day."
The man did not believe this strange advice and hurried his horse. The coconuts fell off, forcing him to stop and pick them up. To make up for lost time, he hurried the horse even more, but the coconuts fell off again. He repeated this many times and did not reach home until nightfall.